Battle of Ainata

The Battle of Ainata (21 January 1192) was a battle of the Third Crusade fought between the army of King Richard the Lionheart of England and the Sultanate of Rum. An English force of 981 troops under Augustine of Ripon met Lajin of Pazarcik's 1,146 troops in battle in northern Lebanon, and they overran the Turks with their cavalry, killing 913 of them with 218 losses.

Background
King Richard the Lionheart embarked on the Third Crusade in 1189 with the goal of recapturing Jerusalem from the Muslims, and several English nobles accompanied him on his quest. 1191 saw victories at Acre and the Battle of Arsuf, and in January 1192 Richard was still besieging the Muslim ruler Saladin's strongholds in the Levant. He dispatched Augustine of Ripon and 921 troops north to present-day Baalbek District, Beqaa Governorate, Lebanon to seize the Muslim strongholds of Laboue and Baalbek there, and they encountered 1,146 Muslim troops under Lajin of Pazarcik at Ainata on a plain near the village. These Saracen soldiers were not just the local militia called up to defend their homes, but also Armenian and Khwarezmian mercenary cavalrymen.

Battle
Augustine gave a speech to his forces, telling them to pray before the battle, as killing was a sin. He also told them to fight in the name of St. George, the patron saint of the Kingdom of England. The English army, consisting of cavalry, yeoman archers, and armored infantry, prepared defensive positions while the Saracens charged. The English archers fired several hails of arrows at the Saracens before retreating behind the main lines, and battle opened. Augustine used his war horn to rally his forces, and his cavalry charged the Saracens as they fought the men-at-arms on foot. Lachin fled the battle as his forces were slaughtered, and the Turkish army was destroyed.

Aftermath
The battle of Ainata was a success for the English, as they defeated a Turkish army sent to fight them. The English proceeded to take back much of the land lost to the Saracens in the 1180s, and King Richard continued his campaign in the Holy Lands.